Closure plug

ABSTRACT

A CLOSURE DEVICE FOR RESEALING OPENINGS IN CONTAINERS COMPRISING A RESILIENT BODY HAVING A HORIZONTAL TOP PLATE AND A DOWNWARDLY AND INWARDLY EXTENDING TAPERED AND STEPPED BODY PORTION. A HANDLE IS PROVIDED WHICH EXTENDS SUBSTANTIALLY THE LENGTH OF THE LONGITUDINAL AXIS OF THE BODY FOR FACILITATING THE REMOVAL OF THE CLOSURE DEVICE FROM THE OPENING.

May 23, 1972 A. P. RUSKIN l 3,664,541

CLOSURE PLUG Filed Feb. 20, 1970 INVIfJN'IOR. ,454 405/5404/ "nited States Patent Office 3,664,541 Patented May 23, 1972 3,664,541 CLOSURE PLUG Asa P. Ruskin, 865 West End Ave., New York, N.Y. 10025 Filed Feb. 20, 1970, Ser. No. 13,114 Int. Cl. B65d 41/00 U.S. Cl. 220-42 B 1 Claim ABSTRACT OF THE DISCLOSURE A closure device for resealing openings in containers comprising a resilient body having a horizontal top plate and a downwardly and inwardly extending tapered and stepped body portion. A handle is provided which extends substantially the length of the longitudinal axis of the body for facilitating the removal of the closure device from the opening.

The present invention relates to a closure device for use in resealing a container.

In recent years, container opening arrangements have been utilized for aluminum cans and the like wherein an opening of a pre-determined size is formed in the can by pulling on a suitable tab connected to a scored or Weakened portion of the container top. This forms an opening of predetermined size. Very often, the user does not desire to use the full contents of the container at the time f opening and desires to reseal the container for future use of the remaining contents. The present invention provides a closure device especially adapted for resealing-the the aforesaid type of openings in the containers.

The construction of this invention features the use of a tapered stepped body portion. The steps are concentric with each other and so arranged that each successive lower step is smaller than the step thereabove with the steps each being substantially the height of the material of the top of the container in which the opening is formed. The body is suitably resilient so that when the closure device is inserted in the opening, it may be pressed in until it is suitably engaged past one of the stepped portions and held securely in place in an air-tight manner. At the top of the stepped body portion there is a plate which provides a sealing ange. In order to facilitate removal of the closure device, a handle is provided which extends substantially along the longitudinal axis of the closure device for substantially the whole length thereof so that the er1- tire closure device may be cleanly and easily freed from the container when it is desired to remove the closure device from the container for further dispensing of the contents of the container.

Still further objects and features of this invention reside in the provision of a closure device that is simple in construction, capable of being made out of readily available materials, which is inexpensive to produce and which is substantially foolproof in operation.

These, together with the various ancillary objects and features of this invention, which will become apparent as the following description proceeds, are attained by this closure device, a preferred embodiment of which s illustrated in the accompanying drawing, by way of example only, wherein:

FIG. 1 is a perspective view of the closure device shown in use closing an opening in a container;

FIG. 2 is an enlarged vertical sectional view, taken along the plane of line 2-2 in FIG. 1;

FIG. 3 is a transverse vertical sectional view, taken along the plane of line 3-3 in FIG. 2; and,

FIG. 4 is a bottom plan view of the closure device, taken along the plane of line 4-4 in FIG. 2.

With continuing reference to the accompanying drawing, wherein like reference numerals designate similar parts throughout the various views, reference numeral generally designates a container made of aluminum or like thin metal which has an opening 12 therein in the top 14 formed by pulling on the conventional pull tab for removing the weakened or scored portion of the top 14 deiining the contours of the opening. In accordance with the concepts of the present invention a closure device generally indicated by reference numeral 18 is used to close the opening 12 and this closure device includes a resilient body 20 having a horizontal plate 22 and a stepped downwardly and inwardly tapered body portion 24. The steps 26, 28, 30, 32, 34, and 36 are each discrete and `are of substantially the same thickness as the top 14. The steps 26, 28, 30, 32, 34, 36 are each concentric with each other with the successive lower steps being successively smaller than the step thereabove.

A handle 38 is integrally formed with the plate 22 and extends substantially the length of the longitudinal axis of the closure device 18 and extends vertically upwardly from the plate 22 so that the closure device 18 may be easily removed from the container 10. The plate 22 is of larger dimensions than the uppermost of the steps 36 so as to form a peripheral flange 40.

The end 42 of the closure device is semi-circular in shape, while the end 44 thereof is arcuate in shape, the general overall shape of the closure device being wedge or sector shaped.

IIn use, when grasping the handle 38 for sanitary purposes, it is easy to physically insert the closure device in the opening 12. Merely by pressing down on the plate 22 the closure device -will conform to the contours of the opening and when it bypasses the irst step just slightly larger than the opening it will grasp the body at the neXt step and form an air-tight, lfluid-tight seal in an effective manner. As shown in FIGS. 2 and 3, the plate 22 provides an effective air-tight seal when the top 14 is engaged in the uppermost of the steps 36.

A latitude of modification, substitution and change is intended in the foregoing disclosure and m some instances, some features of the invention will be employed without a corresponding use of other features.

I claim:

1. A closure device for resealing openings in containers comprising a resilient body having a horizontal top plate and a downwardly and inwardly tapered body portion extending downwardly from said plate, said body being of a Wedge shape and having an arcuate portion at one end and a semi-circular portion at the other end, said body portion having a plurality of discrete steps, said steps being concentric with each successive downward step being smaller than the step immediately thereabove, each of said steps fbeing substantially the thickness of the opening to be closed, there being at least four steps, said plate being of larger dimensions than said -body and defining a peripheral flange overlying and extending outwardly beyond said body portion, said body having a longitudinal axis, and a handle integral with said plate and extending upwardly therefrom along said longitudinal axis, said handle extending more than half the length of said longitudinal axis and extending upwardly from said semi-circular portion.

References Cited UNITED STATES PATENTS 2,841,307 7/ 1958 Yoder 220-42 -B X 3,445,030 5/ 1969 Lutzker 220-60 FOREIGN PATENTS 529,524 6/1954 Belgium y 21S-47 GEORGE T. HALL, Primary Examiner U.S. Cl. X.R. 

